The Republic softball team hit two more home runs, including a grand slam by Julia Higgins, in a 10-0 win over Carl Junction. The win clinched a share of the Central Ozark Conference title for the Lady Tigers for the fourth time in five years.
Republic got on the board with a single run in the second inning. The Lady Tigers scored four more in the fourth, including a solo homer by Livi Collier. Higgins’ grand slam accounted for four more runs in the fifth. Republic ended the game early by scoring a single run in the top of the sixth to take a 10-0 lead.
A.J. Fenske started the game and pitched six shutout innings. Livi Collier came into the game in the seventh inning to close out the win.
Higgins drove in five runs, bringing her season total to 54. That ties a school record set by Hailey Johnson in 2008. Higgins now has 12 home runs, one short of Johnson’s school record set that same year.
With two more home runs Thursday, Republic now has 32 for the season. That ties the Lady Tigers for the fourth-best single-season home run total all-time in Missouri. It’s the most home runs a COC team has ever hit in a season.
Kaitlyn Ragsdale scored two runs to bring her season total to 40. That ties the school record originally set by Kami Holt in 2014 and tied by Lauren Strobel in 2015.
Republic improves to 18-6. They finish the conference season 8-1, tied with Ozark for the championship.
The Lady Tigers play again against Logan-Rogersville October 8 in their final regular-season game.